Both the PC and Smartphone Worlds have woken up to the fact that Apple’s marketshare gains and momentum fulfilling the public’s thirst for cool gadgets is for real and gaining steam. Apple has held the industrial design mantle for some time now with their slick aluminum iMac, their ultra thin MacBook Air, their iPod touch and especially their off-the-chart winning iPhone design. Yet unlike the past, players such as HP, Dell and Samsung aren’t willing to stand around idly any longer while Steve Jobs grabs all of the headlines for their latest and greatest gizmo. In the past few weeks, we’ve seen prime examples of Apple’s competitors attempting to run some interference in the media in the hopes of diluting the impact of Apple’s iPhone 3G in the marketplace. A case in point would be Samsung’s press release touting the advances of their new Omnia touchscreen smartphone just hours prior to Steve Jobs keynote. In that same vein, Apple’s competitors have been clearly burning the midnight oil in an attempt to outshine and out-think Apple’s iPhone, iMac and hot notebook products in the hopes of slowing down Apple’s marketing train. Apple’s competitors have deliberately crafted strategies to get the public to question Apple’s so called “innovative advantage” and/or “innovative mystique.” This report takes a general peak at three recent Apple product challengers and the key wizard behind this current strategy: Microsoft.

Flank One – iPhone Challenger: Samsung’s Omnia/Instinct

Samsung launched their new Omnia (SGH-i900) on the morning of June 9, just hours prior to Steve Jobs introducing the new iPhone 3G at Apple’s developer conference keynote. Was that a mere coincidence? Ha – Not a chance! And yet the better question is why? Why would a major iPhone component supplier want to antagonize and pull the rug from under Steve Jobs’ iPhone related keynote? Although you could always say that “Business is business,” you have to question whether or not that accurately fits this situation. Could there be another force at work here? Yes, of course. The reality is that 1) Samsung’s Omnia is powered by Microsoft’s Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional and 2) the day prior to Steve Jobs keynote, Robbie Bach, president of Microsoft’s Entertainment & Devices Division, was quoted as saying that “We will outsell the iPhone – We will outsell the BlackBerry.” This was said knowing full well that Samsung’s “next-morning” press release was already cued up for release prior to Steve Jobs keynote. Just chalk that up as having Microsoft’s fingerprint.

In respect to Sprint’s new Instinct smartphone, Sprint decided to aggressively attack the iPhone right out of the gate with their theme titled: “Instinct vs. iPhone” (See all 3 sections: “See Instinct in Action,” “About the Phone” and “Movie Extras”). Sprint’s marketing plan didn’t go all that well, considering that just prior to Apple’s iPhone 3G launching, Sprint actually had 5 “Instinct vs. iPhone” challenges in place, including those relating to GSP and slow internet/network speeds. For the record, you could still see the original five challenge- squares in the left graphic below. They were removed once Steve Jobs introduced the 3G iPhone with GPS and faster internet access. What remains are two lonely challenges relating to “shooting video” and accessing “Live-TV.” Their Internet-Challenge video, seen in the right side graphic below, was one of the challenges that were pulled. The original title of the campaign was actually listed as “See the Instinct defeat the iPhone” – but was changed. The three video challenges that were dropped as part of the Instinct vs. iPhone challenge were eventually re-shot as independent standalone Instinct featurettes. In light of the described changes, their iPhone challenge didn’t amount to much all in all.

On the other hand, Sprint’s Instinct advertising in general was found to be quite humorous and creative when not challenging the iPhone – and provides consumers with a movie-trailer like experience under their section titled “About the Phone.” They also offer consumers a few nut-case wallpapers under “Movie Extras” – which some may find amusing. On this particular front, Apple should seriously consider creating an iPhone ad series of their own, much in the way of their “Get a Mac” series. Laughing at your competition is always fun and effective if you do it right.

Flank Two – iMac Challenger: HP TouchSmart PC

Within 24 hours of Steve Jobs keynote, HP struck hard on a second flank with a direct challenge to Apple’s iMac. HP’s second generation TouchSmart PC is definitely a step up from their initial offering – which could be likened to that of a wacked out VCR attached to an LCD panel, or simply a design disaster. HP has completely revamped their all-in-one PC to now be competitive with Dell’s XPS One and Apple’s iMac (For the record, Dell’s XPS-One is no longer illustrated as available on their Canadian website). With a radical new touchscreen interface mated with a series of new quality consumer applications handling music, photos and videos, HP has created an iMac and iLife application challenger worth noting. While it may not be as slick as Apple’s iMac, HP’s touch screen capabilities will definitely turn heads and appeal to a wide section of the consumer market: A market that most presumed that Apple would reach first. This could be a hot contender this coming Christmas.

The HP TouchSmart PC website lays out their new vision for an all-in-one PC and HP has no problem in stealing Apple’s thunder relating to a possible touchscreen iMac this fall. HP offers a series of TouchSmart tutorials covering touchscreen techniques relating to HP’s new consumer centric applications covering music, photos and videos. The tutorials cover scrolling techniques along with a flip action movement, tile shifting and a very cool feature called “fan view” which in many respects resembles that of Apple’s Cover Flow. HP mimics Apple’s application dock but in a very cool way which makes you wonder if Apple will be using a similar approach in the future. It should also be noted that HP actually states that you’ll be able to use iTunes with their TouchSmart display, though they didn’t present that in any of their videos.

Even if you’re a Mac cultist you may appreciate HP’s touchscreen tutorials – just so that you could get a basic overview of what’s likely to be integrated into a future touchscreen based iMac. You’ll also find a series of screenshots below pertaining to various application interfaces related to HP’s TouchSmart PC along with feature shots of their upcoming TV ads. The actual video-ads will provide you with a superior feel for the TouchSmart PC in action – so check them out.

After seeing HP’s video(s), you may very well decide to put off your next iMac purchase until Apple delivers this next generation feature. Otherwise you may just kick yourself for being too impatient and missing out on this revolutionary touchscreen shift that inevitably is in Apple’s pipeline. There’s no doubt about it: Touchscreen PC’s have landed and are here to stay.

Flank Three – MacBook Challenger: Dell’s Latitude XT Tablet

While HP has chosen to focus on the touchscreen desktop market, Dell has taken the notebook-tablet approach for their multitouch launch this week. Dell made their clumsy pre-announcement on their Direct2Dell blog this past Monday by stating that they would be launching a global software update this week that would bring multi-touch to both Windows XP and Vista. You could take a look at their demo video on You Tube – but beware: it’s extremely lame. Then again, you might find it quite funny, like I did. Think of Apple’s well scripted guided product-tours juxtaposed to Dell’s stand-up comedy-like act. Yikes!

Dell’s blog references the Wall Street Journal’s D6 conference where Bill Gates and Steve Ballmer highlighted upcoming multi-touch capabilities that Windows 7 will bring. Also, Chris Flores’ post and video covers more on multi-touch in Windows 7. For the record, here’s the link to Dell’s new multitouch Latitude XT.

The Wizard: Microsoft Plays Catch-Up

Recently Brad Brooks, Microsoft’s VP of Windows Vista consumer marketing talked with InformationWeek , and let it be known that Apple’s ad campaign has had an impact on them: “We’ve got a pretty noisy competitor out there,” Brooks said of Apple whose “I’m a Mac… and I’m a PC,” commercials criticize Windows Vista. “You know it. I know it. It’s caused some impact.” Yes indeed, it has caused an impact and will continue to do so. And it’s this angry undercurrent and resentment against Apple that is certainly one of the motives behind their recent counter-attacks that I’ve just reviewed.

Microsoft is still steaming and stewing over the fact that Apple has usurped their touchscreen leadership the blink of an eye. Yes, the mighty Microsoft who introduced the Tablet PC back in 2001 has had to watch Apple’s iPhone do in one year what it’s taken Microsoft seven years to achieve, if indeed they have. Apple clearly beat Microsoft to the punch on multi-touch technology, which they’re only now beginning to roll out as noted in HP and Dell’s new products.

Over the past year, Microsoft eagerly invited the media in to see their product prototypes like the TouchWall computer, LaserTouch and the wonders of their future Windows 7 – because they understood that Apple’s OS X going mobile could be a killer application. Microsoft felt compelled to demonstrate that they weren’t behind the curve with Apple on this front. Their desperation was uncomfortable to watch at times. But can anyone blame them for fearing this development? Of course not, but it stands to reason why they’re trying so hard now to get the leap on Apple via HP’s TouchSmart PC and other vehicles.

Apple Just Gets It

As far as an Apple touchscreen desktop and notebook are concerned, we know that Apple has that covered because we’ve recently seen their patents for both a touchscreen iMac and MacBook Touch in black and white. The latter demonstrates a combination notebook-tablet. We also know that Apple’s iLife applications are being revamped for touchscreen products that include some rather new and exciting crossover application techniques. Apple has also presented us with extensive details of new touch technologies that are on their way. So while we know that Apple’s touchscreen technologies are on the horizon, let it be said that history has proven it time and time again that being first to market isn’t always worth that much. So it’s not always about racing to compete. It’s about doing something right by bringing together the right balance between intelligence and creativity: Something that Apple just gets – most of the time that is.

And while Apple’s competitors like Gateway, Dell and HP have all tried to match Apple’s consumer desktop known as the iMac, Apple is already planning a next generation machine. Yes, it could deliver a touch display, but it could also provide users with a docking option that would work with an ultra thin notebook like their MacBook or the like. Yet whatever Apple has on their roadmap for Q4, the context is that Steve Jobs promised his staff last year that Apple hadn’t forgotten about the Mac and that they had “the best Macs ever” in the pipeline. I’ll take him at his word on that point. And we also know that Apple is working on a cool iPod visual headset. So there’s a very deep pipeline of cool products on their way.

But at the end of the day, it boils down to the fact that Apple is still winning over the consumer with their cool products and grabbing all of the top tech consumer headlines because Apple just gets it . That’s something that Microsoft has never understood. And while the latest barrage of competing products from HP and Samsung are the very best yet in challenging Apple’s line-up, they still end up looking like they’re from the copy-cat catalog from Microsoft. Regardless of what flank they tried to attack Apple on, they just didn’t pull it off: not-a-one. They come close, but no cigar.

I’ll close my report with this: For those of you who actually need an example of what I mean when I say that Apple just gets it , then I’ll point you to a classic: You know that Apple gets it when intelligent adults actually want to lick your product on public TV (see 1:56 mark of video).

Need I say more? Ha – I didn’t think so.

Written and researched by Neo.